Adjustable headlight.



:H. E. A. ROCHE 2&0. ROY..

ADJUSTABLE HEADLIGHT. v APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 19, 1912.

1,065,726. n ed 'June 24, 1913.

UNTTEE STATES PATENT @FFICE.

HENRY E. A. ROCHE AN'E CLEOPHAS BOY, 0F HAWKESBURY, ONTARIO, CANADA.

- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 24, 1913.

Application filed September 19,5t91fi. flerial its. 721,989.

To all whom it may concern Be itknown that we, HENRY A. Boone and (hinorrms ROY, both of l'lawkesbury, in the Province of Ontario and Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and use ful Improvements in Adjustable Headlights,

of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description This invention relates to improvements in headlights for vehicles, and the object is to provide means for automatically turning the vehicle lamps from side to side prior to the turning of the vehicle itself in order that the intended path may be illuminated before the vehicle turns into it. I

It frequently happens that in driving an automobile the chauffeur is compelled to vturn sharply to one side, and his eyes, accustomed to the brilliantly lighted road ahead,

I 'are absolutely unable to determine the nature of the ground into which he is turning the automobile, until the car body swings around and directs the light of the lamps onto" the intended path. If there is a ditch, vehicle or other obstruction close ahead, the car cannot be turned back into its original path quickly enough to avoid accident unless it is traveling at, a. very low rate of speed. This condition is due to the fact that in an automobile the front wheels turn into the intended path before the body of the car moves laterally to any appreciable extent. Thus it is necessary to turn the car completely into the'new path and advance it sufficiently to aline the body with the new path before the lamps directtheir light in the desired direction. From the foregoing it will be clearly understood that Whenever a sharp turn is made from the straight path, the path turned into is in darkness until the car has advanced some distance, in point of fact, its own length.

In the present invention the headlights are revolubly mounted and are connected to the spreader connecting the front wheel spindles so that when the wheels are turned to guide the car into a new path the lamps turn simultaneously in the same direction and illuminate the intended path, thus disclosing any obstruction before the car is too far advanced to avoid the same. In fact, the illumination of the new path is effected beholds the car to the road with only a slight swerve. I

in drawings which illustrate the invention:Figure l is a front elevation of an auto-mdbile showing the present-invention ap'plied'thereto. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of'the entire apparatus removed from the car and shows its connection to the steermg gear.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 5 designates the front axle of an automobile having the usual bifurcated ends in which the Wheel carrying spindles 6 are pivotally mounted so as to swing in a horizontal plane, and 7 designates the spreader connecting the Wheel spindles 6 and operated laterally by the steering gear to'shift the Wheels. The side sills of the chassis are designated 9 and are connected to the front axle in the usual manner by the springs 10.

The headlights 11 are mounted on the usual forks 12 which, instead of being rigidly secured to the sills, are revolubly mounted in vertically disposed sockets 13 fixed to the sills or other suitable part of the car. The stem of each fork 12 is provided with a collar 12* between which and the top of the socket a suitable ball bearing may be placed so that the lamps may be turned with the greatest ease. Below the sockets the fork stems are providedwith suitable levers 14:, the free extremities of which are pivotally connected to a spreader 15. A reversely curved spring 16 is provided, having one of its ends rigidly secured to the center of the wheel spreader 7 and the opposite end rigidly secured to the center of the lamp v spreader 15. Intermediate the ends of this spring 16, helical springs 17 are attached and extend in divergent direct' s toward the extremities of the Wheel s reader 7 to which they are attached In this way, a resilient connection is established between the lamp spreader and the wheel spreader. The springs 17 are of course of equal length and tension. 1

In steering the automobile, the wheel spreader is moved laterally .to shift the wheels and thus carries the spring 16 1m ally. Any resistance to the lateral movement or any yield of the spring 16 causes an unequal tension of the springs 17. In resuming their normal relation the springs cause the lamp spreader to resume its origiv nal relation to the wheel spreader, so that This turning of the lamps illuminates the path into which the turned front Wheels are guiding the car before the ear body swings into line with the new path, so that if the path is seen to be unsafe the wheels may be returned to gfiide the ear baek onto the original path before it.- has progressed far enough to make turning back iin'pos ble. In addition to the above, the device acts as an imlieator and by reason of the shitting beams of light warns an approaching vehicle or person to Whieh side the ear is binning;

Having thus described our invention, what We claim is:--

The combination with a vehiele having movable heels and a rod connecting said Wheels and arranged to move transversel o t the direction of vehicle motion of a plurality of path illuminating lamps revolubly niounted on the vehicle a rod connecting said. lamps together, a. reversely curved spring fixed. at oneend" to the Wheel eonnectingrod and at the opposite end to the lamp connecting rod, and resilient means connected to said spring extending from the approximate center of the spring in divergent directions toward and being connected to the extremities of the Wheel connecting rod.

In Witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands in the presence of two Witnesses HENRY E. A. ROCHE. CLEOPHAS ROY.

Vitnesses STUART R. \V. ALLEN, G. M. MORELAND. 

